82 °FFriday, November 9, 2018
Texas Man Gets 55 Years In Prison For Fatal Bus Crash
Jack Dillon Young has been sentenced to 55 years in prison for causing a Texas church bus crash that killed 13 people.
Young, 21, –of Leakey, Texas– was sentenced Friday after pleading no contest on May 31 to 13 counts of intoxication manslaughter and one count of intoxication assault. He had faced up to 270 years in prison after a three-day sentencing hearing.
Prosecutors said Young was driving his pickup while under the influence of a prescription sedative and had smoked marijuana before colliding with a church bus in March 2017 on U.S 83 near Uvalde, about 75 miles (120 kilometers) west of San Antonio.
Defense attorney Rogelio Munoz asked for mercy and said doctors didn't properly monitor Young's prescription drug use.
Abbott Calls Special Election To Replace Garcia In Texas Senate
Governor Greg Abbott issued Friday a proclamation ordering an expedited special election in Texas State Senate District 6 following the resignation of Senator Sylvia Garcia.
The expedited special election will be held on Tuesday, December 11, 2018, with early voting beginning on Monday, November 26, 2018.
Candidates who wish to have their names placed on the special election ballot must file their applications with the Secretary of State no later than 5:00 p.m. on Friday, November 16, 2018.
Earlier on Friday, Garcia had announced her resignation and asked Abbott to call a quick election.
HISD Board Approves Launch Of Community Schools
Five campuses of the Houston Independent School District will provide about 4,000 local students and their families services related to housing, food, clothing and counseling, as well as medical and dental health. HISD calls the concept community schools.
The Board of Education approved Thursday the use of grant funds from the Department of Education to turn the five campuses to community schools. The five campuses include the Albert L. Thomas Middle School and four elementary schools: Benavidez, Lockhart, Marshall and Robinson.
HISD says the schools serve 3,898 students in communities with high poverty rates and a demonstrated need for wraparound services.
The Houston Federation of Teachers (HFT), Communities in Schools, the City of Houston's Office of Education, the Houston Food Bank, Houston Community Schools Partnership and Texas Children's Hospital are partnering with HISD in the initiative.
Judge Blocks Keystone Pipeline Construction
A U.S. district judge has issued an order blocking construction of the controversial transnational Keystone XL Pipeline until the State Department conducts further study of its impact on the environment.
Judge Brian Morris' 54-page order, issued late Thursday, overturns the Trump administrations's approval last year of the proposed 1,179-mile pipeline and at least temporarily prevents it from being built.
Although the decision does not permanently halt the pipeline's construction, it nevertheless comes as TransCanada, the Canadian company that owns Keystone, is preparing to start construction in Montana, shipping pipe to various locations throughout the state, the Great Falls Tribune reports.
The order stems from a lawsuit filed by the Indigenous Environmental Network and North Coast Rivers Alliance.